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Province of Imperia
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The Province of Imperia (It. Provincia di Imperia) is a mountainous and hilly province, in the Liguria region of Italy, situated between the Maritime Alps to the north and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Its capital is the city of Imperia.
To the east lies the Italian province of Savona while its western edge forms part of Italy's frontier with France (the département of Alpes-Maritimes) and it shares its northern border with the Piedmontese province of Cuneo. The mountain chain to the north of the province has several peaks above 1600 m, with some peaks on the French border above 2000 m.
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The Province of Imperia (It. Provincia di Imperia) is a mountainous and hilly province, in the Liguria region of Italy, situated between the Maritime Alps to the north and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Its capital is the city of Imperia.
To the east lies the Italian province of Savona while its western edge forms part of Italy's frontier with France (the département of Alpes-Maritimes) and it shares its northern border with the Piedmontese province of Cuneo. The mountain chain to the north of the province has several peaks above 1600 m, with some peaks on the French border above 2000 m. Ranges of hills run down to the coast in a generally north-south direction, in effect making the province of Imperia a succession of hills and valleys. Each valley tends to have its own seasonal river or torrential stream and only one valley can lay claim to a year round river - the River Roia whose upper stretches are within France.
Notwithstanding the terrain, the main communications infrastructure runs east-west along the coast. Several international express trains serve this coast while the motorway is characterised by many tunnels and viaducts. The nearest international airport is at Nice in France.
Prehistoric cave remains were found near the French border at Balzi Rossi, although there is far more evidence of Roman civilisation. The Coast road was the original Roman Via Aurelia and there are remains of a town including a Roman theatre near Ventimiglia. Most coastal towns and many hill-top villages date from mediaeval times although there has been much development during the 20th century. In general the coastal strip has become over-populated while inland villages are steadily becoming depopulated.
This stretch of coast shares much sentiment and history with the French coast, which as far as Nice was at one time part of Italy. The local dialect of Imperia province is a mix of French and Italian, the cuisine and architecture also show many similarities. Indeed Menton in France and Ventimiglia in Italy claims to be the first international joint-community.
With its close proximity to France, the province of Imperia is geographically a continuation of the French Riviera and this stretch of coast is often referred to as the Italian Riviera. Indeed many historians claim that the Imperia resorts of Sanremo (also referred to incorrectly as San Remo), Bordighera and Ospedaletti (plus Alassio which is found in the adjoining province of Savona) formed the world's first 'Riviera', predating and originally outshining the French Riviera.
In the 19th Century these resorts became very popular with wealthy Europeans, especially the British who can lay claim to starting the local tourism industry. It is claimed Britain's Queen Victoria once stayed on this coast and at one time there were large communities of resident British and Russian aristocrats who favoured the mild winter climate. Amongst those who lived on this coast are Queen Margaret of Savoy who lived in Bordighera, Alfred Nobel who died in Sanremo, the Russian Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna, Tchaikovsky who wrote Eugene Onegin in Sanremo, Monet who painted around Bordighera and finally Grock the famed Swiss clown who died in Imperia. These resorts remained popular with the British until the mid 20th century when Spain became more favoured.
Today there are few descendants of these communities although traces of its grand past can be found in the Villa Hanbury near the French border, famed for its tropical and sub-tropical gardens founded by Sir Thomas Hanbury and the Russian Orthodox church in Sanremo.
Nowadays the term 'Italian Riviera' is used for the whole Ligurian coast as far east as La Spezia, so it is more accurate to refer to the coast of the Imperia province as the Riviera dei Fiori (or Riviera of Flowers). It takes this name from the exotic flora and important flower-growing industry centred on the Sanremo and Ventimiglia flower markets.
City of Imperia
The city of Imperia itself was created during the Mussolini era from two existing towns - Porto Maurizio and Oneglia and then raised to provincial administrative capital. Historic Porto Maurizio, built on a headland, claims to date from Roman times, while Oneglia which is situated in the valley of the Impero torrent is the business and industrial centre and has a more modern appearance. Both centres have small commercial and fishing ports.
In addition to the twin ports of Imperia there are several other ports along the coast, although most have given way to pleasure craft. Tourism is still important today, but apart from flower growing, olive cultivation and oil pressing are important mainstays around the city of Imperia.
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